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May

17

Hometown Source: $220 million will help fund education jobs in Minnesota

Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken, and U.S. Representatives Jim Oberstar, Betty McCollum, and Keith Ellison, announced $220 million to strengthen education in Minnesota. The funding comes through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 and, among other things, will help fund education jobs.

“Every time we invest in the future of our children, it pays dividends for our nation’s prosperity and competitive standing in the world,” Klobuchar said. “The Recovery Act has supported thousands of good jobs in Minnesota, all while improving the quality of our children’s education.”

“Investing in education is investing in Minnesota’s future,” Franken said. “The Recovery Act has created jobs across Minnesota. This grant will allow us to preserve important teaching jobs and retain talented educators as our state makes tough choices about the budget in the upcoming year.”

“The Recovery Act has kept class sizes low in Minnesota classrooms, ensuring that our children can continue receiving a good education,” Oberstar said. “In many school districts Recovery Act funding was all that stood between larger class sizes and big property tax increases last year because of tough economic times and state budget cuts. This additional Recovery Act funding will continue to aid Minnesota families who are working hard to provide quality education for their children.”

“This announcement could not have come at a better time. Our public schools are struggling with round after round of state and local cuts,” McCollum said. “These additional federal funds will protect the quality of our students’ education by helping to keep teachers in our classrooms while the state of Minnesota makes difficult decisions on school funding. I urge Governor Pawlenty to spend all of this funding for direct student services only, not on bureaucracies or testing companies. During these hard economic times, meeting the needs of our children must be the top priority.”